Abstract/Notes: Early childhood education has been shown to positively impact future academic performance, as well as social and emotional development. With ever-increasing demands being placed on children's academic performances, school readiness has become a key component of academic success. The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative study was to examine the effectiveness of different early childhood curriculum models in preparing children for kindergarten, and to investigate whether one early childhood curriculum model better prepares students than another. The theoretical framework for the study is based on the developmental constructivist theories of Piaget, Vygotsky, Erikson, and Dewey. Kindergarten teachers assessed school readiness by administering the Kindergarten Observation Form. Each student had matriculated from either Montessori, High/Scope, or Reggio Emilia programs or early childhood programs without an identified curriculum model. Kindergarten teachers rated students on 24 items related to areas of cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, and physical development. ANOVA and post-hoc tests revealed that students matriculating from programs without an identified curriculum model scored significantly better than their counterparts, F (3,122) = 5.33, p = .002. Implications for social change include improved kindergarten readiness on the part of students, increased awareness by educators as to best practices in early childhood education, and, a move towards understanding the types of environments in which children learn best.

Language: English

Published: Minneapolis, Minnesota, 2012

Abstract/Notes: Multiage programming is a school reform option used throughout the United States. Much of the current literature focuses on the short-term benefits of multiage programs, particularly at the elementary level, with little consideration for long-term effects or for what might happen to students once they leave the multiage classroom and enter middle school. While there has been significant research that generalizes the transition experience of the general population of students, there has been limited research conducted on this transition experience for this specific population, the multiage elementary student. The purpose of this simultaneous, mixed methods study was to provide an in-depth examination of the transition effects on students who transition from multiage elementary classrooms to traditional single-grade classrooms at the middle school. In this study, eight students who had previously attended multiage elementary classrooms were given the Piers-Harris 2 Children's Self Concept Scale at three points, fall, winter, and spring during their first year in middle school to assess the students' social and emotional well-being during the transition. Students were also administered a middle school transition questionnaire to identify what procedural, academic, or social issues were of concern to them. Students were interviewed about their transitional experiences. In the analysis of the data showed that the students' overall sense of self and self-esteem improved over the course of the transitional year. Student concerns with procedures, academics, and social life decreased over the course of the year. The following major categories emerged from the interviews: (a) adjusting to the structure of middle school, (b) adjusting to new academic demands, (c) managing relationships with teachers and peers, and (d) changing sense of self. The findings have implications for middle level educators, multiage classroom elementary educators and for parents.

Language: English

Published: Chicago, Illinois, 2012

Abstract/Notes: Black students consistently underachieve academically in comparison to White students. To minimize the achievement gap between Black students and White students, some experts advocate the use of differentiated instruction as an alternative methodology to teach underachieving students. Differentiated instruction is predicated on teaching students based on their learning abilities and/or learning preferences. The differentiated instructional model examined in this study combined traditional teaching methodology with specific Montessori stage two and stage three constructs. This exploratory qualitative study examined the impact that Montessori constructs combined with traditional teaching methods had on academic achievement of Black students in grades four and five in an inner city school in Dallas County, Texas. The study further explored the sample’s perceptions of and preferences for the combined teaching methodology. The sample group had been exposed to the differentiated teaching model evaluated in the study. Disaggregated 2007 and 2008 TAKS results from the Texas Education Agency were obtained to compare the school’s fourth and fifth grade Black students’ achievement to their cohort groups in the district and in the state. The TAKS data comparisons found variability in performance among the groups in each of the subject areas assessed by TAKS. Qualitative data from a Likert Scale, multiple choice questions, questionnaires, written essay, and interviews were obtained from the participants to examine the students’ perceptions of and preferences for the combined teaching methodology. Data responses were analyzed and themes were developed to determine black students’ preferences for teaching, learning, and factors that contribute to learning. The findings of this study imply that future use of a differentiated instructional model that combines traditional teaching methodology and specific Montessori constructs and principles might be effective in improving Black student achievement.

Language: English

Published: Minneapolis, Minnesota, 2009

Abstract/Notes: The purpose of the study was to investigate differences in literacy outcomes of Montessori-trained students under alternative instructional conditions in first grade. As a method of instruction, Montessori has not been adequately researched in the area of literacy to verify its efficacy in educating students. Previous studies compared Montessori students to non-Montessori students; therefore, the findings were open to the criticism that private school students enjoyed an a priori advantage over their public school counterparts. In this study, all participants had Montessori preschool experience. Roughly half the subjects chose public school and half chose to continue at Montessori for first grade. Sociofunctional linguistics, educational psychology, and Montessori's writing on education provided theoretical underpinnings for the study. A mixed research design was employed. Qualitative observations were conducted over a period of a calendar year. Quantitative measures were taken in a pretest/posttest format on five different literacy measures. Qualitative results show the core theme of the classroom was child-centeredness. This assertion was supported by five separate categories that emerged from observation. Quantitative results indicate that Montessori-trained students in alternative instructional conditions fared better on literacy measures than their counterparts who remained at Montessori for first grade. These results, along with methodological innovations for using literate register cohesion and genre analysis in literacy research, contribute to the educational research base in literacy studies.

Language: English

Published: West Lafayette, Indiana, 2005

Abstract/Notes: 由于教学对象的特殊性,培智数学教学存在难以找到合适的教材、难以统一进度、教学时间被割裂等难题.而蒙台梭利教学法有丰富的教具,教具蕴含丰富的学科知识,教具的可操作性强和学生控制教学进度等特点解决了培智数学教学中的难题,值得在培智数学教学中应用.但在实际的教学过程中也需要对蒙氏教学法进行一定的调整,以便发挥更好的效果.

Language: Chinese

ISSN: 1004-8014

Abstract/Notes: This study focused on helping students with learning disabilities to improve their listening comprehension and acquire early reading skills of decoding, reading and understanding what a word and two- or -three-word phrases say. Since reading at the advanced stage involves comprehension of sentences and paragraphs, in this study, building the foundation of reading at the word level is the logical place to start. With that skill in place, combining words into a phrase and understanding what it means will be the next step. Meanwhile, helping the students understand what was read to them through questioning builds their listening comprehension skills, which will be a great help in reading comprehension once the students have advanced enough to read sentences and paragraphs. The target group used for this study included six 1st graders with learning disabilities, who had difficulties with reading and comprehending. These 1st graders with learning disabilities were not taught one-on-one due to large class size. They had no knowledge of phonics. They could not relate the sounds they heard to the letters of the alphabet. The curriculum-based assessment (CBA) model was the alternative assessment model that was used to assess the students. The 12-week intensive study focused on two variables: a dependent variable and an independent variable. The dependent variable was reading at the word and phrase level, and the independent variable was word sound, blending vowels, consonant blending, and consonant and vowel blending. The scientific methodology was the single subject model, a 1-minute assessment. Each student was assessed for 1 minute each day for 3 days. The results of the assessment were used to determine the baseline before the intervention implementation. This methodology is also known as "AB Design." AB refers to a two-phase design, the baseline phase and the intervention phase. The intervention phase was introduced after the baseline phase was established and recorded in data format. Intervention data were recorded as well. The data collected were graphed in two phases. The results showed that the students were able to learn how to read and acquire comprehension within the 12 weeks. The reading strategies that were used in this study were based on Montessori's methods, which is a methodology in learning how to decode words which leads to automatic reading. These strategies are being used in Montessori schools throughout Dade County public schools, but not particularly with special education students. The results of this study were positive.

Language: English

Published: Cincinnati, Ohio, 2003

Abstract/Notes: The problem of this study was to determine if there is a significant difference between the academic achievement scores of students in grades 2 through 5 who are taught with the Montessori method of instruction and those students who are taught with traditional methods of instruction in the Helena Public Schools. Analyses used a two-way ANOVA; method and gender as well as method and aptitude were examined. The level of significance was set at alpha =.05. A matching technique was used to match Montessori students with students from traditional classrooms by the independent variables of grade, aptitude, gender, socioeconomic conditions, and handicapping conditions. The study also examined if there was a significant difference between the aptitude of all students in Montessori classrooms and all students in traditional classrooms. The population studied was second, third, fourth, and fifth grade students during the spring of 1996. A total of 120 students was used in the study of academic achievement. There were 145 F-tests conducted in this study. At the second grade level, students from traditional classrooms scored significantly higher than students in Montessori classrooms in mathematics computation and mathematics concepts and applications. Also at the second grade, when aptitude was taken into consideration, Montessori low aptitude students scored significantly higher in vocabulary than low aptitude students in traditional classrooms. There were no significant findings in any of the subtests at the third and fourth grade levels. At the fifth grade level, Montessori students scored significantly higher in language expression and social studies. Interaction was found with aptitude in language expression and with gender in science. A comparison of the aptitude of all Montessori students to all students from traditional classrooms revealed that Montessori students scored significantly higher. The overall results of this study show that the Montessori method of instruction and the traditional method of instruction provide students with comparable achievement test scores. A longitudinal study is recommended to examine the long-term effects of academic achievement of those students taught by the Montessori method of instruction.

Language: English

Published: Bozeman, Montana, 1997

Abstract/Notes: Schools following the Montessori method use individual and small-group teaching methods and hands-on, concrete materials to provide a basis for deep learning of mathematical concepts. Schools with a mostly traditional approach to mathematics teaching mainly use large-group lecture methods with little use of manipulative materials. This study investigated the understanding of place value concepts and abilities of Montessori students by comparing task responses of 93 students in grades 1-3 in a Montessori school (n=47) and in a mostly traditional comparison school (n=46). Data collection included clinical interviews with each student. The theoretical framework used in the study was taken from Zoltan Dienes, a mathematician, who believed that mathematics is learned and created by forming layers of abstract generalizations. Interview tasks were both gathered from the literature and created by the researcher. Procedural tasks included those that asked students to count, to identify the value of digits in a number, and to use the standard addition algorithm for multidigit numbers. Conceptual tasks included those that required students to solve two-digit addition and missing addend questions with and without materials and to solve word problems involving three- and four-digit numbers. Some tasks included large numbers into the thousands because Dienes' framework calls for increasingly abstract generalizations, which for place value means larger and larger numbers.

Language: English

Published: Columbus, Ohio, 2000

Abstract/Notes: The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether students in a kindergarten/first-grade multiage class achieve at a different level than students enrolled in a traditional kindergarten or first-grade class in a selected primary school in East Tennessee. The question of the interaction between gender and type of instruction was also analyzed. The causal comparative quantitative research method was used to analyze data differentiating between students enrolled in multiage and traditional classes, retrospectively. A t-test was used to determine the level of performance the students demonstrated on the BRIGANCE K Screen at the beginning of the study. The number of mastered first-grade reading skills and mathematics skills, the score on the system-wide first-grade reading test and mathematics test, and gender interaction with type of instruction in each area were analyzed using ANCOVAs. Statistically significant results (pBRIGANCE 1 Screen(ANCOVA). In 1998, the combined males scored significantly higher than the combined females. In 1999, multiage males had significantly higher means than traditional males. ANCOVA results showed statistically significant difference in the number of mastered reading skills of the multiage students in 1998 as well as with the combination of all three years. The multiage mean was the higher of the two groups all three years. For the number of mastered mathematics skills, ANCOVA results showed a statistically significant difference in 1999 with the multiage scores higher than the traditional group. ANCOVA results showed no significant difference between the groups on the standardized reading and mathematics tests analyzed. Findings indicate that kindergarten students may benefit from kindergarten classes in a multiage setting, and that first-grade students may benefit from multiage settings in mastering skills in reading and mathematics but that benefit is not necessarily demonstrated by standardized test scores.

Language: English

Published: Johnson City, Tennessee, 2001

Abstract/Notes: With the passing of NCLB in 2001, pedagogy in the kindergarten classroom has changed exponentially. The requirement for a rigorous academic curriculum has replaced the play-based learning that used to be synonymous with the kindergarten classroom. Since the beginning of kindergarten, researchers have worked to prove the importance of play in the classroom and the role of the educator in these play-based learning scenarios. Many studies have found a correlation between play and child development, but this has not been enough to change the minds of educators and school districts across the United States. This qualitative case study explored teachers’ perceptions and classroom interactions during play through a triangulation of data including video recordings, interviews, and observations to explore the effect play might have on the social, emotional, and oral language development of kindergarten students in a district that is already implementing free play centers in the classroom. Varying beliefs among the educators and multiple scenarios of social, emotional, and oral language development skills being used by students during these free play sessions were explored. Key themes that emerged from the data included a range of understanding amongst the teachers, the need for regular professional development on how to implement play in the classroom, and the importance dramatic play has on social, emotional, and oral language development for kindergarten students.

Language: English

Published: Springfield, Missouri, 2022